rabinowitz >> this week, president obama hits the campaign trail. and is it enough to change the debate heading into noember? and democrats are distancing anemselves from the president d speaker pallosi and even the policies, will 2 wok? and even nineyeas after the t9-11 attacks, has america overreacted to the terro threa threat? some seem to think so. welcome to the journal, editorial report. i'm paul gigot.

12 months and stimulus later, president obama has discovered the virtue of tax cuts. this week, the president promised a $180 billion plan that includes a credit and tax write-off for businesses that invest in equipment before 2011. do his proposals go far enough and will they change the debate going into the midterm? the deputy editor and columnist. lld steve moore, so steve,in you've been telling me all weekh that y like this presidential proposal. why is it different. and how is it different than what he promised before and how is it better? >> the intesting thing that i like this week, i do like some ofthe ideas, for example the allowing businesses to write off allowing businesses to write off the apcooital purchases that thy make, it's a good idea. but what's interesting, nithe

business commuty landed with a thud. they don't want the idea and they think that the cost of the plan with all of the additional corporate tax increase makes it not worth it. >> steve, iwant to ask ou, i want to get to the business yount and i want to ask you, why think this is a good proposal first. it doesn'td represent a good philosophical shift fot.r the president. >> my like it because if you actually allow the businses to write off the capitol purchases like computers, you're going to get a burst on the economy, but the point is, it's only a one-year tax cut. so what's going to happen, purchases that would have been made in 2011 and 2013 are going to be fast forwarded. >> i think this is a phical shift by the president. before it was always the spending to drive the consumerf spending. and this is the first time he has come out and said, we need

to doing? for business inceptives, for the tupply-side of the economy. at'sa huge switch and it's a tacit admission that his previousis policies haven't worked. isn't that a significant change? >> it's a significant change on its base, paul, but i don't think that he personally believes in any of it. it's something that politics has driven him too. it has been are you going to extend the bush tax breaks? but i think that the philosophical things that the entas said, he doesn't want to lower business or cooperate tax rates to put money in the hands of the wealthy or the rich. he will not do that. so this was plan b. >> so this is political jujitsu from stampeding to overrulehim on the bush tax rates. >> that's why he suggested that it lands with a thud in the

busines community because they recognize the olitical jujitsu. >> is it going to stop the democrats? been veryhem who hae g we needut it, sayin to keep the 2003 tax rates. is this obama proposal going to stop that? >> no, and here's why. the president and those who support his latest proposals have two problems, and remember the proposals are more than tax cuts. he put forward $50 billion in new stimulus spending in new infrastructure projects, he calls them. here's the problem. number one, stimulus is a dirty word. and people are more conerned aboutore spending and the deficit is huge. aou have more democrats who are not eager to pass a plan like this that includes more spending, and the other problem, they are feeling pressured t extend the bush tax cuts. you've had four senate democrats saying, we should do that across

the board, at least on a temporary basis, and more hose democrats do that. and with the business community out there suggesting that this p is a poor substitute for the broader policy change, there's a lot of pressure not to just f on this. >> you think that the business community would dispense with the new promotional and just extend the bush tax rate for growth? >>here's no question. they're saying keep the tax rates where 24th, and the other problem thabarak obama had is a trust issue. they don't feel after the healthcare bill and the stimulus spending and the debt regulation, all of these, they think that obama has an anti-business mentality and they don't trust him on these issues. yeah, he's going to give tax cuts, but he's going to pay for that with a corporate tax

increase. >> some say is that he's putting republicants in a box, if they don't support it, they will be opposing ideasus that they have supported in the past. >> i think theoretically it's true, but there's not as much of a box. the time frame for the calendtti for getting it done is very is tight. there'sn a legislation that's nt easy to put through. they are divided. and getting it done legislatively is going to be difficult. and someone like mitch mcconnell in the senate is not going to have too much trouble pushing this off to the side and keeping it from passing. i think that the democrats are the ones with the big problem here. with the tax increases looming, they have to extend them and two years, it becomes a presidential campaign issue, which obama doesn't the. >> i thi it's a philosophical

moment. it's a shift. we have been dominated for three years by this model. and obama has admitted that it hasn't worked and now we have the chance to make the turn after november. still ahead, the democratic dash. with theelectn less than two months away, opponents are running as far and ft from the president, speaker pelosi and even from their orewn voting records.

words alone aren't enough. our job is to listen and find ways to help workers who lost their jobs to the spill. i'm iris croinss. we'll keep restoring the jobs, tourist beaches, and businesses impacted by the spill. we've paid over $400 million in claims and set up a $20 billion independently-run claims fund. i was born in new orleans. my family still lives here. i'm gonna be here until we make this right. and your last chance to save. i'm angie everhart, and i lost 34 pounds on nutrisystem.

if you've been thinking of starting nutrisystem, therwon't be a better time this year. this is your last chance to get our gourmet select line at our lowest price for the rest of the year. i'm marie osmond, and i lost 50 pounds on nutrisystem. i lost over 100 pounds and lowered my blood sugar on nutrisystem d. our summer sales event has a program on sale just for you, but you must act now. that's me 22 pounds ago, and i'm never going back there again. enjoy ur perfectly portioned meals a day, including fresh-frozen options. people say i look 10 yearsounger i feel 10 years younger. you will n see a lower price for the rest of the year. lose weight and save money, but you must act now. these are the final days. hurry, now's the time, and this event won't last. call... before this limited-time offer ends.

>> with election day less than two months ago away, democrats are expressing their distancing from policies in the last two years. look at this ad from congressman, joe donnelly. in indiana in a tough re-election fight.i >> they're at it again miring

joe donnelly. the fact, joe donnelly is indiana's congressman, he oppo opposes attempts to privates a social security, and nancy pelosi's energy tax. she risks our social security and the stock market. there's a difference. joe donnellis the independent voice who protects your family. >> so kim, the sub connec sub cf the ad should be nancy pelosi, t be never meant the woman, who is that? won't be sn in the same room with her and how many democrats are running on this is it. >> if you're in trouble in the polls, you're running on this theme. and that's what democrats have secided they will run on thi fall. which is opposition to their rty's agenda and also the president personally nd the majority leader, hary reid. and you are seeing it not just

on things like healthcare, but on stimulus, and also on the auto bailout. >> is there any single issue on which they're actually running on the record?>> >> you know, you do see a few guys out there saying, we passed a bill to rein in wall street, but this is dicey because of the reputation that the administration is getting anti-business, and that'snot such a clear cut victory and some democrats are worrying about that. >> dan, is this going to work? >> i don't think so. i love the idea of forgetting thout the stimulu and the obama care. this is about forgetting about the $2 trilln gorilla in the room that the american people were reading about for an entire year. they have to pivot ad we are

seeing in thespeeches, kim cane of the democratic committee.de rendell talked about whether they'rae tea part years, and interestingly, tim cane saili that the republicans are the party that might threaten soci security and medicare, and when times are tough, the american thele always turto democrats. and that's what barak obama was getting at when he attacked the republicans as disliking the middle class this week. and that's what the strategy iss >> this strategy is did rwork once before. it worked in a specal election earlier this year in southwestern pennsylvania, and he said we can replicate that. and we can stave off maybe 10, 15 seats that we might loose. why? >> well, it miht work for some races, but what's remarkable to

me, which is it's not just nancy pelosi but who is barak obama? a lot of them are explicitly running against t obama agenda. this time a year ago, when barak obama ad the democrats political strategy were saying, once the americanpeople see this bill, they were going to love 2 and see is this is a big asset. and that hasn't happened at all. >> by the way, part of what happened this week, insurance companies are raising their premiums. example the opposite of what the bill promised. >> republicans are responding to this type of trage, and the ads running against joe donelly in indiana. >> joe donry clais he's independent. but he's voted with nancy pelosi 88% of the time. for the obama-pelospelosi healte plan.n

and he has taken money frm democratic leaders. $30,000 from nancy pelosi alone, and ow donnelly wants us to believe that he's independent? the national congressional committee is responsible for this advertising. >> that reminds me of 2008 when they tried to link joh john mccn to george bush. >> this is what the problem is for democrats, and the way it works. yo go back to the special election, and the democrat running there didn't have a record. one of the problems for the democrats here, for all of the guys who maybe voted against stimulus or maybe voted againstt the healthcare bill, they all got a bad vote somewhere, and they're going to link today to it. and right now, it's the referendum on the country. and it's hard to disassociate

themselves. >> a lot of thedemocrats are vulnerable this year, and hand-picked, rob iman well. when he was in the congress, to run against moderates in the districts with modern voting loserds, and they might this year now that rob is in the white house because of the policies of rob iman well.h >> thmae on who has to be the happenniest in the country is e is lieberman. he drove over the cliff, and they're all running in his direction. >> last word, americans stop to remember those ed nine years ago today. and some say that the u.s. is overreacting to the terror threat.ncer ] eve we'll examine that next. introding bayer am, an extra strength pain reliever with alertness aid to fight fatigue. so get up and get goin'! with new bayer am. the morning pain reliever.

with new bayer am. got the gecko t-shirt... is "4 million drivers switched!" gecko water bottle... notebook... chamois... gecko: sir, i feel a little bit uncomfortable with all... you kn... with all this. i mean, it's not about me. should be about how geico's the third-largest car insurance company in the nation. things like that. w boss: oh, of course! we're not gonna get carried away. gecko: uh...yeah... all right as long as we n't overdo it. vo: geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. how'd you do that? do what? it tastes t good to be fiber. you made it taste like chocolate. it has 35% yn.ofour daily value of fiber. do it again. turn it into somethintasty. this guy's doing magic. there's chocolate chips in here now.

how'd you do that? right! tasty fiber, that's a good one! ok, umm...read her mind. what's she thinking? that's right! i'm not thinking anything! [ male announcer ] fiber one chewy bars. cardboard no. delicious yes.

>> the anniveary d the september 11th attacks. an columnists thise week reflected foreign policy. says that america overreacted to the events of that day and overestimated the strength .f the enemy. nine years ater, can anyone doubt that al qaeda is simply not that deadly a treat? since thatg gruesome day in september 11th, they have bee been unable to launch a single attack. wall street foreign affas column mist brent stevens, and matt kaminski join us, and brent, overreaction? >> that's probably not what prepare were saying after the nearly successfulchristmas

bombing in detroit. and car bombing that nearly went off in time square, or after madrid or the bombings in london. and partly, i think this kind of commentary is a reaction to a certain lull, but that lull is a reflection of the success that we have had in killi al qaeda leaders and reducing some ofs. their capabilities. and i think that the threat remains, and it's shifting in terms of who is trying to attack us, and it's shifting geographically, moving to pakistan and yet it remains ever present. to suggest that we overreacteds missethe point of the last nine years. >> to be confident in president oba's policies because he has followed bush in many respects. >> it's a tribute to what has happened in the last nine years. we could not have anyone say that we overreacted.

not because a single american has been kids on american soil by terrorists since 9-11, and because the policies work, we are able to have n open day bait. but if you want to see overreaction, what happens it a nuclear bomb goes off in an american city orif a plane goes down. >> that's ultimately the threa , even if i it is imminent. which we don't thin it is, but if that ever happened, that's the kind of thing that would have dvastating impact for civil liberties. ithe american ublic would probably demand real, be potentially american changing policy. >> it'sfrightening, what would happen it there were a major terrorist attack on the country, nuclear explosion, and it's why you have to have aggressive

counter terrorism policies abroad, to prevent that kind of scenario and reaction. israelis have this meant forewith terrorists. you have to mow the lawn. the grass is always going to come up. and you have to keep it down, andhat's at the united stes has been doing for the past nine years. it has been doing it inthe northwest frontier province and attempting to do it in yemen and iraq, elsewhere, we have homegrown threats, and if tve we move to a posture of complacency, we're going to find the weeds coming up. >> i guess that would bepo postering a dilemma, overreaction, and is there a more modeate middle that we could pursue here? >> it would be difficult to find it. where exactly is the moderate middle? it the fact is for nine years, not a single american has died on american soil because we have

been pursuing aggressive counter terrorism. how much do you want to reel that in? see where the dividing line is? >> one thing that maybee have overreacted is on the bureaucratic epansion. the intelligence in 2005, all it did was put another layer of bureaucracy over the 15 agencies. the department of homeland security is not a model of streamline activity. >> certainly not. it has been a critique that conservatives it should make. bureaucracy with a joint complex out of washington, but thme fallacy that's made here is people saying al qaeda is weak, and therefore, we overreacted. perhaps al qaeda is weak because of the way that we reacted. w >> d that's why we need to stay on offense. once you get into office the way the obama teame has, they become

as concerned about the terror threat as the previous guys, maybe as much as.com cheney? >>. >> hits and misses of the week. activia has delicious news fodessert lovers. often, the best part of a meal is the dessert. but sometimes after a busy day and a heavy greasy dinner... my system needs some tlc. now there is something new. introducing activia dessert. rich, silky, smooth yogurt with desserty flavors like strawberry cheesecake, an blueberry cheesecake, and peach cobbler. and because it's activia, it helps regulate my digestive system. mmm. works for me. ♪ activia new activia dessert. bad dog, balloon pop. [ dog whimpers ] because orbitz has price aurance. man with computer. if another orbitz customer books the same hotel or flight for less, i'll get a check for the difference automatically. [ male announcer ] when you bitz, you know.

>> time now for our hits and misses of the week, kim, first to you. i >> in the early 1990s. theca spotted owl became the symbol of evironmentlism gone wild. and shutting down logging in the northwest, it's not the logging that hurts the bird, as much as it's rival, the barn owl. the administration caught some of this with the new recovery plan that would help both the owls and the loggers. the obama administration has thrown out the bush plan and now is reverting to the same old greenn anti-logging stance, and

it's not helping the birds as much as locking people out of forests. >> it's still sweet, fidel castro tells jeffrey goldberg that the cu ban model, the communist economic mode doesn't work in cuba of less anywhere, and it'sa pity that the chauban people have had to endure so imuch misery and deprivation, bt later in life, at least it's an admission of what everyone else seems to know. >> for the first time since the 9-11 anniversary, we have good news and progress at ground zero. all have been resolved. and the port authority and the city, you can see the first tower is now one-third of the way up. they're on floor 36. and they're adding a floor more or less every week. and the memorial will be open bt next year, the 10 yearha anniversary, and we have the biggest manmade